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                                        The Story As I Know It with a great deal of help from Julia Mortenson and Joel Russell. This story is of a man who led a long, eventful life. It began in Delaware, but                                               moves took him to North Carolina, Kentucky, Tenneessee and Alabama (then the Mississippi Territory). I believe he had nine children and two wives. He died in Kentucky
                                        at the age of 80+. I've tried to put all known details into his story with the supporting documentation. There are still open questions which you will find at the end. Any
            alterations you think should be made, please CONTACT US.

The people who were already on the Indian land could pay a fee and remain on the land until they could buy the land at an auction of Public Lands. At the auction, they could buy the land for a small down payment and then further payments for the land. The land had to be paid off in 5 years. These were called "credit sales". Joseph is listed in the Receiver's Ledger, Sale of Public Lands, Credit Sales, Ledger "A", Book 101. as shown by Joel Russell. In 1810 Joseph Greenwood of Madison Co., MT (Mississippi Territory) is shown as buying 3 whole sections (each 1 mile square):

1. Sec. 34, Township 1, Range 1 W. This means it was the first township south of the Tennessee line (thus within 6 miles of the line since a township was 6 miles long) and within the first 6 miles west of the Huntsville Meridian. This Meridian runs straight through Huntsville and up Hwy 231. Meridianville is right on the Meridian. The sections are numbered 1-6 from right to left, then down and across left to right 7-12, etc. So Section 34 would be mid-way on the southermost range line. The road running along the bottom of this township was called Grimwood Rd. Then a road goes right up through his section called Matlock Road. I suspect this was his "driveway".

At this same auction, he also bought two more complete sections:
2. Sec. 15, Township 2, Range 1 W. This would basically be just below his other land about a mile away.
3. Sec 22, Township 2, Range 1 E. This piece of land was East of Meridianville on the Flint River, just north of Moore's Mill.
He apparently couldn't make the payments for these pieces of land, so he "assigned" them to other men. He would have been repaid for his payments which he could credit to another piece of land. I'd like to see the actual ledger for these payments. They broke these sections down into 1/4's when they were assigned.

We assume that the female over age 21 in 1809 was Martha but in 1814, Joseph returned to Wilson Co., TN to marry Elizabeth, the widow of Erikus Anderson (who was also on the 1809 MS Territory census). Joseph bought on credit and kept Sec. 34, T1, R1W beginning in 1810, but full payment was due in 5 years. The records show that shortly after he married Elizabeth, he actually puchased the SE 1/4 of Sec. 34 on 12/20/1814. If Martha died in Madison Co. there is no cemetery record. However, there is a cemetery right on Grimwood Rd. in the next Section called Plainview. It contains several old graves of that time period. There were several field stones as well as unmarked graves, so that may be where she was buried.

Joseph Greenwood stayed in Madison Co. until he sold his land in Sec. 34 to John Mosley 1/10/1828. At this time he moved to Calloway Co., KY. He was 72 years old. In 1832 he applied for a Rev. War pension and listed all the places he had lived. He stated he had lived in Madison Co. for 20 years so this would be 1807-1827. His pension stopped in March, 1836, so he died shortly before that. The Court House in Calloway Co. burned, so no estate information is available.